This is a conference grant proposal to NIA for an international scientific meeting, MiniSymposium: Aging, Immunity and Infection that will take place during the next biannual International Symposium on Infections in the Immunocompromised Host (ISIIH), Peebles, Scotland, UK, June 3-6, 1990. The specific aims of the proposal include: 1) direct costs to attract outstanding principal speakers, discussants and abstract presenters, 2) partial support for a unique international minisymposium to promote the interfacing of infectious disease with advances in cellular and molecular immunity and 3) partial support for publication of the Proceedings of the MiniSymposium. Long-range goals are to: 1) promote mutual collaborative efforts among U.S. basic science researchers and clinical investigators working in the field of aging, immune response and infection and their international colleagues, 2) encourage future applications to NIA regarding the pathogenesis of aging and the mechanisms of host response to infection and 3) integrate aging and the concept of the elderly as an immunocompromised host as a regular section in the biannual meetings of the ISIIH. The Co-leaders of the MiniSymposium are DW Bentley and NR Klinman. The MiniSymposium will focus on 3 major areas: cell-mediated immunity, humoral and molecular immunity and resistance to infection. The format and agenda will include invited speakers (Miller, Goidl and Murasko), discussants (Weigle, Klinman and Kauffman), 9 TBN presenters of extended abstracts who will be selected from 25 TBN presenters of abstracts for poster session and closing remarks (Weksler). The Proceedings of the MiniSymposium will be published in a dedicated issue of the journal, Aging: Immunology and Infectious Disease within five months of the MiniSymposium. The forum of the MiniSymposium, the international setting of the ISIIH and the outstanding participants will provide an ideal opportunity for interfacing basic immunology with infectious disease and defense mechanisms in the elderly.